BER Airport: United Airlines is again starting direct flights to New York

After a two-year break, United Airlines is once again connecting Berlin with the USA. The booking interest is great, it is said.

–
–

Berlin. It’s been around two years since New York was accessible by direct flight from Berlin. Then came the first lockdown in the corona pandemic and the entry ban to the USA for people from Europe, among others. After the ban on vaccinated people was lifted last November, it is now possible to reach the USA non-stop from the capital region again.

From March 28, United Airlines will be offering direct flights from BER Airport to New York/Newark. The importance was emphasized at a press conference on Thursday by BER boss Aletta von Massenbach and Thorsten Lettnin, Director Sales Continental Europe, India & West Africa at United Airlines. “It is the first time that BER will be included in United Airlines’ global route network,” said Lettnin.

From the Monday after next, flights will take off daily from BER to Newark Airport at 9.50 a.m., arriving there at 1 p.m. local time. In the opposite direction, it starts at 5.40 p.m. from New York, arriving in Berlin at 7.50 a.m. local time the next morning. According to Lettnin, Newark Airport is an important hub for United Airlines, from which passengers can also travel to other regions of the USA. Onward flights to Florida or California are particularly popular with travelers from Berlin.

BER Airport: There is great interest in United flights to New York

According to Lettnin, there is great interest in the flights, which United plans to offer all year round. “We are already feeling a backlog due to the Corona period,” he said. “Everyone in the tourism industry is talking about a great summer in 2022. What we are seeing underlines that.” There is demand for both business travelers and private travellers. Boeing 767 aircraft with 214 seats are used for the route.

So far, the number of long-haul connections from BER has been manageable: there are direct flights to Qatar, Singapore and Dubai. “We know that there is great interest in opening more destinations,” said von Massenbach. It is also known that the region “should be much, much better connected, in all directions, especially to the west”. North America has always been a very important market, said the airport boss. She hopes that the signal that United Airlines is sending out with the start of its direct flights to BER is a good sign for the connection of Berlin and Brandenburg.

Seasonal connection from BER to Washington follows in May

United Airlines plans to fly to the next destination from Berlin from May 27th. Then it goes to Washington Dulles International Airport, near the US capital. The route will be offered by the airline for the first time from Berlin-Brandenburg, also daily, but initially seasonally until October 29th. One sees great potential for the capital-to-capital connection, said Lettnin, especially since there is a connection to more than 50 other destinations in the United States. This connection departs at 11:05 a.m. from BER and arrives in Washington, DC at 2:25 p.m. local time. The return trip is at 5.45 p.m., travelers arrive in Berlin at 8.20 a.m. the next day. Plans as to whether other cities in the USA will also be connected directly to Berlin in the future have not yet been specifically named. If there is demand, the supply will also develop accordingly, it was only said.

Outside of the USA, BER boss von Massenbach has not yet mentioned any specific plans for additional long-haul flights. “Of course we are in talks with the airlines that have flown to Tegel in the past, that know this market and already have their structures here,” said von Massenbach. In addition, one is also in contact with other airlines to see what fits with the demand in the region. There is little hope for connections to China in the foreseeable future: As a result of the pandemic, the country is still a difficult market overall and entry is still only possible to a limited extent, explained von Massenbach.

For the next few months – the summer flight schedule officially begins on March 27 – BER is also cautiously optimistic. “We expect to get close to 50 percent of the traffic from 2019 in these months overall,” said von Massenbach. At peak times, especially in the summer holidays, you would probably climb over 50 percent. Prepare for this with all partners. At the same time, however, the airport boss emphasized that, unlike in the pre-pandemic period, the foreseeability of what will happen in a few months is still limited.

Airport BER – also read:

–